Secure mailbox system

ABSTRACT

A mailbox system includes a mailbox assembly having a front opening door, the door being shiftable between a closed disposition and an open disposition, a mail depository being revealed by opening the door and an indistinguishable as a security feature secure mail storage assembly remotely located with respect to the mail depository and being in communication therewith, the mail storage assembly being lockable by an unobservable lock. A method of securing postal items in a mailbox system is further included.

CROSS REFERENCES TO RELATED APPLICATIONS

This application is a Continuation-In-Part of Ser. No. 11/073,031, filedMar. 4, 2005, published as Pub. No. US-2005-0258226-A1 on Nov. 24, 2005,which in turn is a Continuation-In-Part of U.S. application Ser. No.10/404,613, filed on Apr. 1, 2003, published as Pub. No. US 2004/0195304on Oct. 7, 2004. This application also claims priority to ProvisionalApplication No. 60/758,589 filed Jan. 12, 2006. The above applications,in their entirety, are incorporated herein by reference.

TECHNICAL FIELD

This invention relates to mailboxes. More particularly the inventionrelates to road-side mailboxes with security features.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

Mailboxes for individual postal customers are an integral and necessarycomponent in the operation of the US Postal Service. It is desirablethat incoming mail be secured in the mailbox to prevent theft orobservation of the incoming mail which may contain valuable documents,checks, credit cards, personal letters or other items of value to themailbox owner that would cause loss or inconvenience if observed orstolen by an unauthorized person. If the person removing or inspectingthe mail is not authorized, the authorized user of the mailbox maysuffer either lost property or lost privacy. Lost privacy can be a veryserious loss. A lock on the access door can restrict access to themailbox to the person with the key to the lock, thus providing animproved level of security by limiting authorized access to the mailboxonly those people who properly have a key to open the mailbox door. Incertain settings, such as apartment buildings or offices where there isa single delivery point for numerous postal customers, locked mailboxeswith the mail carrier having a key for delivery of mail is a practicalsolution.

A typical rural or suburban roadside mailbox, on the other hand, has afront access door hinged at the bottom and a side indicating flag, whichis used to signal to a motorized mail carrier that outgoing mail isavailable for pickup. In the conventional mailbox, delivered incomingmail can be easily removed or inspected by anyone driving or walking byand opening the front access door. Simply installing locks and providingthe mail carriers with keys or other means to access many differentlocked mailboxes to deliver incoming mail in a rural or suburban settingwould be inefficient for the mail carrier and otherwise problematic.

Therefore, the access door needs to remain unlocked before the mailcarrier arrives so the mail carrier can open the access door to eitherremove outgoing mail from inside the mailbox, deposit incoming mail intoit, or both. After the mail carrier has deposited incoming mail andclosed the access door, the access door would desirably lock shut toprevent unauthorized access to the delivered mail. The drawback to suchan arrangement is that a self-actuating lock would lock whenever themailbox door was shut by anyone. This would include a child toying withthe mailbox door or a prankster or even the postal customerinadvertently shutting the door after they have deposited mail forpickup.

One of the solutions to avoiding unauthorized access to incoming mail isto have the access door remain unlocked at all times but having theincoming mail fall far enough away from the access door so that itcannot be retrieved by reaching into the mailbox through the accessdoor. In this case, an authorized user typically retrieves the mail byunlocking a second access door close to where the mail has fallen. Thissolution requires a limited access door, restricting the size andquantity of mail that can be easily delivered. Also, the size of themailbox may be cumbersome. Moreover, in such known mailboxes, forexample U.S. Pat. No. 4,753,386, also see prior art FIG. 11, theadditional storage area in these prior art mailboxes is readily apparentto a passerby. Such structure suggesting storage of mail invitesintrusion.

Another solution to avoiding unauthorized access to incoming mail is tohave the door be initially unlocked and then have it automatically lockshut once the door is closed. The door would typically be shut by themail carrier who, after opening the mailbox and removing outgoing mailfrom it and/or depositing incoming mail into it, would close the doorthereby locking the door shut. This provides the desired security if themailbox door is not opened and then shut before the mail carrier arrivesto deliver mail. However, if the door must be opened to add additionaloutgoing mail or otherwise check the status of the outgoing mail, thedoor will lock shut if it were closed. The outgoing mail will then belocked in the mailbox and unavailable for pickup by the mail carrier,and incoming mail will remain undelivered because the door is lockedshut.

There are other examples of locking rural mailboxes in the prior art.For example, a mailbox with a slot opening design which does not providefull access to the mailbox, the access being restricted by thedimensions of the slot. Another example is a full access mailbox thatallows the door to be opened once and locks upon the door beingsubsequently closed. Yet another example of a full access mailbox in theprior art requires the mail carrier to rotate an arm outside the boxafter installing the mail and closing the door. The rotation of the armcauses the door to lock shut so that it can be reopened only upon usinga key.

It would be desirable to have a mailbox that mail could be delivered toin the conventional manner by the mail carrier from a vehicle (withoutthe use of a special key) so as to not inconvenience the mail carrier,but that once delivered, the mail is automatically deposited in a securelocation, the secure location being substantially unobservable to apotential tamperer or thief. The mail recipient should be able toreadily remove the mail, especially from a vehicle stopped alongside themailbox.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

The mailbox system of the present invention substantially meets theaforementioned needs of the industry. Mail can be delivered to themailbox system in the conventional manner by the mail carrier from avehicle (without the use of a special key). Once delivered, the mail isautomatically deposited in a secure vault by action of closing themailbox door. The secure location and other security features of themailbox system are substantially unobservable or indistinguishable orcamouflaged as a security feature to a potential tamperer or thief. Thesecure location is locked at all times until unlocked by the mailrecipient. The mail recipient is able to readily remove the mail fromthe vault, from a vehicle stopped alongside the mailbox or by standingin front of the mailbox system.

The present invention is a mailbox system includes a mailbox assemblyhaving a front opening door, the door being shiftable between a closeddisposition and an open disposition, a mail depository being revealed byopening the door and being indistinguishable as a security featuresecure mail storage assembly remotely located with respect to the maildepository and being in communication therewith, the mail storageassembly being lockable by an unobservable lock. The present inventionis further a method of securing postal items in a mailbox.

A feature and advantage is that the storage area is configured to appearas part of a solid conventional support structure for a conventionalmailbox.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 is a perspective view of the mailbox system in the closed andlocked disposition;

FIG. 2 is a perspective view of the mailbox system with the mail storageassembly in the open disposition;

FIG. 3 is a side elevation view of the mailbox system of FIG. 1;

FIG. 4 is a cut-away side elevational view of the mailbox system;

FIG. 5 is sectional side elevational view of the mailbox systemdepicting the path of postal items upon closing of the mailbox assemblydoor;

FIG. 6 is a sectional side elevational view of the mailbox system withthe mail storage assembly in the open disposition;

FIG. 7 is an enlarged sectional view of the latch depicted in the ovalof FIG. 6;

FIG. 8 is an enlarged sectional view of the latch in the opendisposition as depicted in the oval of FIG. 6; and

FIG. 9 is a side sectional view of the mailbox system with the mailstorage assembly 14 in the open disposition and the shoe elevated forretrieval of postal items 32.

FIG. 10 is a perspective view of a different embodiment of theinvention.

FIG. 11 is a perspective view of a different embodiment of theinvention.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

The mailbox system of the present invention is shown generally at 10 inthe Figures. Mailbox system 10 has three major subcomponents: mailboxassembly 12, support assembly 13, and mail storage assembly 14.

The mailbox system 10 appears to be a standard rural mailbox mounted ona supporting post. The security features, as will be described below,are not apparent to the casual viewer of the mailbox system 10. Bysecluding the security features of the mailbox system 10 from view, thesecurity of the mailbox system 10 is enhanced.

The first subcomponent of the mailbox system 10 is the mailbox assembly12. The mailbox assembly 12 appears to be a standard rural mailbox andis compliant with US Postal Service standards. Accordingly, the mailboxassembly 12 has an arched cover 20 that may be formed of a variety ofmaterial, including metallic and plastic materials. The arched coverextends forward from a rear 21. Unlike a standard rural mailbox whichhas a floor that extends the full depth dimension of the mailbox fromthe door 24 (a component of the door assembly 18, discussed below) tothe rear 21, the mailbox assembly 12 has a truncated floor 22 thatextends inward from the door 24 a relatively short distance andterminates at a floor rear margin 23. As will be discussed in greaterdetail below, the floor rear margin 23 functions as a fulcrum.

The door assembly 18 of the mailbox assembly 12 has an arched door 24with a rearward directed lip 26. The lip 26 overlies the outer margin ofthe arched cover 20 when the door 24 is closed for weather protection. Asimple handle 28 is positioned proximate the upper margin of the door24. A hinge 30 extends between the outer margin of the floor 22 and thelower margin of the door assembly 18 such that the arched door 24 may bepivoted downward to open the arched door 24. With the door 24 in theopen disposition, postal items 32 may be inserted into the mailboxassembly 12 as depicted in FIG. 4.

Specifically, with reference to FIG. 4, a false floor 34 is disposed onthe bottom of the mailbox assembly 12 overlying the floor 22 in agenerally horizontal disposition when the door 24 is opened. The falsefloor 34 is hinged at its proximal end 35 to the door 24 by hinge 36.Hinge 36 is disposed approximately ¼ to ⅓ the distance from the hinge 30to the top margin of the arched door 24. The false floor 34 extendsrearward from the hinge 36 and terminates at its distal end 37. Itshould be noted that the distal end 37 is spaced apart, preferably byseveral inches, from the rear margin 21 of the mailbox assembly 12. Anelongate slot 38 is defined in the false floor 34. The elongate slot 38is preferably rectangular in shape.

A lock 44 is affixed to the floor 22 of the mailbox assembly 12. Thelock 44 has a key post 40 that projects upward through the elongate slot38. A removable key 42 (see FIGS. 6-8) may be disposed in a key slot(not shown) defined in the key post 40. The lock 44 has a forwarddirected, shiftable lock bar 46.

The second subcomponent of the mailbox system 10 is the support assembly13. The support assembly 13 includes a foot 50, forming a base of themailbox system 10. The foot 50 is preferably rectangular in shape,defining a relatively smaller box at the lower margin of the supportassembly 13. The foot 50 may be slipped over a buried 4″×4″ wood post 51or the like that is partially buried in the ground to support themailbox system 10 in the depicted disposition.

Extending upward from the foot 50 is the upright support 52. The uprightsupport 52 has a lower portion 54 and an upper portion 56. The lowerportion 54 of the upright support 52 includes a generally planar back 58and two opposed, generally planar, sides 60. The lower portion 54 isthree sided, defining a front opening 62 that extends substantially thefull height of the lower portion 54. A cantilever support 64 extendsforward from the lower portion 54 and comprises a component of the upperportion 56. The cantilever support 64 underlies and supports the mailboxassembly 12. The cantilever support 64 has two opposed sides 66. Each ofthe sides 66 has a horizontal margin 65 underlying the mailbox assembly12 and an inclined margin 66. The upper portion 56 of the uprightsupport 52 is capped with a top 68 and an optional decorative device 70.As short front 72 depends from the top 70 to the arched cover 20.

The third major subcomponent of the mailbox system 10 is the mailstorage assembly 14. As depicted in FIGS. 1 and 2, the mail storageassembly 14 is designed to be innocuously received within the supportassembly 13 when in the closed disposition as depicted in FIG. 1. Themail storage assembly 14 is designed to be pivoted forward from thesupport assembly 13 when the in open disposition, as depicted in FIG. 2.It should be noted that the mail storage assembly 14 appears to be justa portion of the support assembly 13 when the in the closed disposition,thereby further obscuring the security provisions of the mailbox system10 from an observer.

The mail storage assembly 14 includes two subcomponents: receiverassembly 74 and shoe 75. The receiver assembly 74 is generallythree-sided, having two opposed generally rectangular, spaced apartsides 76 joined by a front 78. The rear margins of the sides 76 define arear opening 80. It should be noted that the sides 76 are spaced apartslightly less than the sides 66 of the cantilever support 64 so that inthe closed disposition of the mail storage assembly 14, the sides 76 maybe received within the sides 66. The front 78 then appears to the casualobserver to be the front of the upright support 52 of the supportassembly 13. The receiver assembly 74 is pivotally coupled to theupright support 52 by a hinge 82. Preferably, the hinge 82 is hidden andis not discernable when viewing the sides 60 of the lower portion 54 ofthe upright support 52 in order to further obscure the security featuresof the mailbox system 10.

The upper portion of the receiver assembly 74 includes an inclined floor84 and a transverse floor 86. The inclined floor 84 is preferably formedat an angle matching the angle of the inclined margin 76 of thecantilever support 64. In this manner, when in the closed disposition,the inclined floor 84 appears to form a portion of the cantileversupport 64, thereby disguising its ability to be pivoted to the opendisposition as depicted in FIG. 2.

The transverse floor 86 generally underlies the lock 44 when in theclosed disposition of FIG. 1. The transverse floor 86 thereby comprisesa lock cover such that the presence of the lock 44 may not be observedwhen the mail storage assembly is in the closed disposition, again, inorder to further obscure the security features of the mailbox system 10.

An upward directed lip defines the side margins of both the inclinedfloor 84 and the transverse floor 86. The transverse floor 86 includesan interior, upward directed latch 90, as depicted in FIG. 2. The latch90 has a transverse slot 92 defined therein. A grip 94 is affixed to theoutside margin of the receiver assembly 74 proximate the transitionbetween the incline floor 84 and the transverse floor 86.

The second component of the mail storage assembly 14 is the shoe 75. Theshoe 75 is designed to be disposable within the spaced defined withinthe receiver assembly 74. The shoe 75 is not coupled to the receiverassembly 74 and is therefore readily removable therefrom. The lowerportion of the shoe 75 comprises the vault into which the postal items32 are transferred automatically upon closing the door 24.

The shoe 75 is generally rectangular in cross-section having a front 102and an opposed, shorter rear 104. The front 102 and rear 104 are joinedby opposed, spaced apart sides 106. An angled top margin of the side 106extends from the rear 104 upward to the front 102. The shoe 75 includesa bottom 110. The shoe 75 defines a vault 112 at the bottom 110.Preferably, a grip 114 is formed proximate the upper margin of the front102.

In operation of the mailbox system 10, the door 24 is opened as depictedin FIG. 4 to insert postal items 32 into the mailbox assembly 12. Inthis disposition, both the door 24 and the false floor 34 have agenerally a horizontal disposition. The postal items 32 are supported onthe false floor 34.

After the postal items 32 have been inserted, the door 24 may be closed.This action causes the hinge 34 to rotate through an arc ofapproximately 90 degrees from the horizontal disposition of FIG. 4 tothe vertical disposition of FIG. 5. Such action causes the false floor34 to both shift rearward and be tilted about the fulcrum defined by thefloor rear margin 23 of the floor 22. Such action causes the distal end37 of the false floor 34 to rotate downward as the proximal end 35rotates upward, thereby resulting in a significant incline to the falsefloor 34. Such motion causes the postal items 32 to slide rearward onthe false floor 34 and drop into the vault 112 defined in part by thebottom of the shoe 75, as depicted in FIG. 5. In this disposition, thepostal items 32 are safely deposited proximate the base of the mailboxsystem 10. The mail storage assembly 14 is locked closed by the lock 44.

Retrieval of the postal items 32 by the postal patron is depicted inFIGS. 6-9. Referring to FIGS. 6 and 7, the postal patron opens the door24 and inserts the key 42 into the lock 44. Rotation of the key 42causes the shiftable lock bar 46 to translate rearward clear of the slot92 defined in the latch 90, as depicted in FIG. 8. The mail storageassembly 14 may now be opened, as depicted in FIGS. 6 and 8. The postalpatron grasps the grip 94, pulling the mail storage assembly 14 forwardand downward to generate the arc of motion depicted in FIGS. 6 and 8.

With the mail storage assembly 14 in the open disposition, as depictedin FIGS. 6 and 9, the grip 114 of the shoe 75 may be grasped by thepostal patron and the shoe 75 may be pulled upward and forward to reston the transverse floor 86. In this disposition, the postal items 32 maybe readily removed from the shoe 75 by the postal patron from the windowof a vehicle parked along side the mailbox system 10 or simply byapproaching the mailbox system 10 on foot.

After retrieval of the postal items 32, the shoe 75 is returned to itsdisposition within the receiver assembly 74. The receiver assembly 74 isthen rotated back to its closed disposition. The key 42 is againrotated, thereby shifting the lock bar 46 forward to engage the slot 92defined in the latch 90, thereby locking the mail storage assembly 14.The mail patron then removes the key 42 and closes the door 24.

It should be apparent that in the locked disposition, the postal items32 are secured within the vault 112 defined by the shoe 75 of themailbox system 10. Further, the security features of the mailbox system10, including the lock 44 and the rotatable mail storage assembly 14with its receiver assembly 74 and shoe 75 is hidden from view to thecasual observer. As distinct from prior art systems, there is no readilyviewable locked door, which may tempt persons to break into the mailbox.

Referring to FIG. 11, a further embodiment is disclosed. A verticalrectangular port post 210 adjoins a horizontal rectangular post portion212. The inclined portion 220 to guide the mail to the internalreceptacle is not visible from the exterior. The fold out portion 226 isflush or recessed inwardly from the forward margin 230 of the sidepanels 236 to further hide the security functions. A recess 240 to gripthe fold out portion is also hidden under the horizontal post portion212.

Referring to FIG. 12, the support post assembly 260 may be entirelyunder the base 264 of the box portion 266. The width w1 of the postportion 270 may be the same as or greater than the width w2 of thecantilever portion 272 and the width of both the post portion andcantilever portion are preferably less than the width w3 of the boxportion. Preferraby, the support post assembly is of one color, forexample white, and the box portion is of another color, for exampleblack or gray, thereby providing further “camouflaging” of the existenceof the hidden vault.

Application Ser. Nos. 11/073,031; 10/404,613; and 60/758,589, areincorporated herein by reference.

The present invention may be embodied in other specific forms withoutdeparting from the spirit of the essential attributes thereof;therefore, the illustrated embodiments should be considered in allrespects as illustrative and not restrictive, reference being made tothe appended claims rather than to the foregoing description to indicatethe scope of the invention.

1. A mailbox system, comprising: a mailbox assembly having a frontopening door, the door being shiftable between a closed disposition andan open disposition, a mail depository being revealed by opening thedoor; and a secure mail storage assembly remotely located with respectto the mail depository and being in communication therewith, postalitems deposited in the mail depository being automatically transferredto the mail storage assembly upon closing the door.
 2. The mailboxsystem of claim 1, the secure mail storage assembly being shiftable froma closed, locked, substantially indistinguishable as a security featuredisposition to an open disposition for the retrieval of postal items. 3.The mailbox system of claim 1, a secure mail storage assembly lock beingunobservable when the door is in the closed disposition.
 4. The mailboxsystem of claim 2, the secure mail storage assembly being substantiallyreceived within a support assembly when in the closed, lockeddisposition.
 5. The mailbox system of claim 2, postal items beingdeposited in a receiving vault located proximate a support assembly basewhen the secure mail storage assembly is in the closed, lockeddisposition.
 6. The mailbox system of claim 1, the mailbox assemblyhaving a shiftable false floor, inclining of the false floor effectingtransfer of the postal items to the mail storage assembly.
 7. Themailbox system of claim 6, the shiftable false floor being hingedlycoupled to the door and being supported in part by a fulcrum.
 8. Themailbox system of claim 6, the shiftable false floor being disposed in asubstantially horizontal disposition when the door is in the opendisposition and rotatably shifting about the fulcrum to an inclineddisposition responsive to closing of the door.
 9. The mailbox system ofclaim 3, the secure mail storage assembly lock having a key slot beingdisposed in a floor of the mailbox assembly, the key slot beingaccessible by opening the door.
 10. The mailbox system of claim 3, thesecure mail storage assembly lock having a shiftable lock bar, the lockbar being shiftable between a locked disposition locking the secure mailstorage assembly in a closed disposition and an unlocked dispositionfreeing the secure mail storage assembly for opening.
 11. The mailboxsystem of claim 1, the secure mail storage assembly including aremovable shoe, the shoe defining a vault for receiving deposited mailitems therein.
 12. A mailbox system, comprising: a mailbox assemblyhaving a front opening door, the door being shiftable between a closeddisposition and an open disposition, a mail depository being revealed byopening the door; and an indistinguishable as a security feature securemail storage assembly remotely located with respect to the maildepository and being in communication therewith, the mail storageassembly being lockable by an unobservable lock.
 13. The mailbox systemof claim 12, the secure mail storage assembly being shiftable from aclosed, locked, substantially indistinguishable as a security featuredisposition to an open disposition for the retrieval of postal items.14. The mailbox system of claim 12, the secure mail storage assemblybeing substantially received within a support assembly when in theclosed, locked disposition, in such disposition, the secure mail storageassembly being indistinguishable as a security feature.
 15. The mailboxsystem of claim 12, postal items being deposited in a receiving vaultlocated proximate a support assembly base when the secure mail storageassembly is in the closed, locked disposition.
 16. The mailbox system ofclaim 12, the mailbox assembly having a shiftable false floor, incliningof the false floor effecting transfer of the postal items to the mailstorage assembly.
 17. The mailbox system of claim 16, the shiftablefalse floor being hingedly coupled to the door and being supported inpart by a fulcrum.
 18. The mailbox system of claim 16, the shiftablefalse floor being disposed in a substantially horizontal dispositionwhen the door is in the open disposition and rotatably shifting aboutthe fulcrum to an inclined disposition responsive to closing of thedoor.
 19. The mailbox system of claim 12, a secure mail storage assemblylock having a key slot being disposed in a floor of the mailboxassembly, the key slot being accessible by opening the door.
 20. Themailbox system of claim 19, the secure mail storage assembly lock havinga shiftable lock bar, the lock bar being shiftable between a lockeddisposition locking the secure mail storage assembly in a closeddisposition and an unlocked disposition freeing the secure mail storageassembly for opening.
 21. The mailbox system of claim 12, the securemail storage assembly including a removable shoe, the shoe defining avault for receiving deposited mail items therein.
 22. A method ofsecuring postal items in a mailbox system, comprising: providing a frontopening door on a mailbox assembly, the door being shiftable between aclosed disposition and an open disposition, revealing a mail depositoryby opening the door; and disposing a mail storage assembly remotely withrespect to the mail depository in a disposition that isindistinguishable as a security feature secure and communicating themail storage assembly therewith, locking the mail storage assembly by anunobservable lock.
 23. A mailbox comprising, a front opening box portionwith a box interior, the box portion having a door that has a lowerhinge and swings open forwardly and downwardly, and a base, a supportpost assembly connecting to and supporting the box portion, the supportpost having an open interior, a bin contained therein, the open interiorof the support post operably connected to the open interior of the boxportion whereby mail placed in the container portion can fall into thebin, the support post openable forwardly about a lower hinge forremoving the bin and mail contained therein.
 24. A mailbox comprising, afront opening box portion with a box interior, the box portion having adoor that has a lower hinge and swings open forwardly and downwardly,and a base, a support post assembly connecting to and supporting the boxportion, the support post having a post portion and a cantilever portionand an open interior, the open interior of the support post operablyconnected to the open interior of the box portion whereby mail placed inthe container portion can fall into the open interior of the supportpost assembly.